Pile Dynamics Inc.
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Engineering, Construction equipment |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Founder | Dr. Frank Rausche, Garland Likins |
| Headquarters | United States |
| Products | Pile Driving Analyzer (PDA), CAPWAP software, quality assurance and control devices for deep foundations |
Pile Dynamics Inc. (PDI), established in 1972 by Dr. Frank Rausche and Garland Likins, originated from research conducted at Case Western Reserve University, formerly known as Case Institute of Technology. The company’s foundation traces back to a project named Dynamic Studies on the Bearing Capacity of Piles, which involved graduate students and faculty members, including Dr. Rausche under the guidance of Professors George Goble and Fred Moses. This investigation applied one-dimensional stress wave theory to formulate the Case Formula and resulted in the creation of the Pile Driving Analyzer (PDA), a device that measures pile bearing capacity in real time through impact testing.
Garland Likins, himself an alumnus of Case, transformed the university prototypes into commercially viable instruments equipped with intuitive software interfaces. The PDA integrates sophisticated dynamic soil modeling and transducer technologies, as detailed in numerous technical publications.
CAPWAP, a dynamic testing software developed by PDI, has undergone extensive validation comparing its outcomes with static load tests and has become the industry benchmark for signal matching analysis. Thanks to this comprehensive research and development, PDI’s dynamic pile testing solutions have achieved worldwide recognition.
In addition to the PDA, PDI has broadened its portfolio to include various quality assurance and control devices tailored for deep foundation applications.
Patents
- Device for sensing piles and methods for its application
- System for pile testing
- Device and method for inspecting and testing boreholes
- Borehole testing apparatus